Long Overdue
by Renmiri
Summary: As Harry packs his belongings to leave the Dursleys his Aunt Petunia tells him a bit more about his mother and tries to explain her own ways all this years. Too little too late or better late than never ? Writen before the Deathly Hallows


Harry folded his cloak and threw it in the trunk. There were a few books and clothes still scattered around but most of his stuff was packed. He paused and looked around the room, locating the few stray items he'd still have to take, reflecting on how little a lifetime at the Dursleys amounted to. In objects as well as in attachment, there was little to take from that house on Privet Lane. He was glad to leave but couldn't help feeling a bit empty.

A knock on the door interrupted his thoughts and he yelled "Enter" already bracing himself for Dudley's harassments. It was useless to lock the door, that would only make his cousin more obnoxious.

To Harry's surprise Aunt Petunia entered with a tray, lemonades and scones on it, saying she wanted to talk with him, "Give you a proper send off" were her words. She set the tray on his bed, offering him a lemonade and pushing a plate in his direction. Harry merely looked at her, too surprised by her sudden civility to do much else. He was about to politely refuse the lemonade when Aunt Petunia said:

- "I saw them once... Those evil wizards you battled. They came after Lily"

Harry felt a chill. The death eaters had come to a muggle neighborhood after his mother, just like they did after him ? He wanted to hear all about it. "Tell me more please Aunt Petunia..."

- "I will... Drink your lemonade" she ordered and Harry complied. His throat was dry anyway. Aunt Petunia started telling her tale:

- "It was after she graduated from that wretched school of yours. Our parents had passed away and she moved in with your father soon after. But she came back to be a maid of honor at my wedding... She was my only family. I had to ask her, I wanted her in there. To show her how a good honest wedding is done. We were at the dress maker, making the final adjustments to my wedding dress and hers. I suppose she could have waved her wand for her dress but she knew I didn't like it so she was doing it the proper way. That was very decent of her." said Aunt Petunia gulping her lemonade and looking lost in memories. Harry didn't dare to utter a sound, lest his Aunt stop telling her tale. In all those years she had never spoken of his mother to him. He wanted very much to hear this one and didn't dare push his luck. She continued...

- "I was looking at myself at the mirror, full of pins on my dress when I saw them. A tall ugly one and a woman laughing hysterically. I screamed. Lily pulled her wand and yelled at me and the seamstress to run away. But we couldn't. They were cutting our path to the door. We had to watch as they fired their wands at Lily and she at them. She got the woman down, or so we thought. When Lily finally got the man on a bind he vanished. I was about to chastise her for scaring my seamstress witless when the woman wizard cackled. Lily jumped and pushed me out of the way of a green flame that came out of the woman's wand..."

Petunia took another huge gulp of her lemonade, her face contorted with fear and distress. She forced herself to continue. "That green flame... It bounced on the mirror and hit the seamstress in full. She didn't have even time to scream, she fell and died on the spot. That woman wizard cackled with glee at seeing that she had killed someone. Lily got her down again, this time for good... At least good enough that they took her. The other wizards that came after. "To mop up things" said Lily. She asked me if I wanted to forget what I saw, like they were doing with all the people around. I wouldn't allow them wizards meddle with my mind so I said no."

- "I was furious with your mother. How dare she bring her troubles to our neighborhood ? On my wedding ? Hadn't she spoiled my life enough already with all her magic tricks, showing off to mom and dad ? Couldn't she at least give me a normal wedding ? Lily told me those two who attacked us had been bad wizards. That she and your dad were involved in fighting bad wizards. A kind of police work she said, only for witches and wizards. That she could have never have guessed that one of the bad apples would follow her here where we lived. I was really furious but I relented and asked her to stay for the wedding... After all she had saved my life that day. That green flame was aimed at me."

Aunt Petunia looked at Harry with a haunted look. "I saw what they could do, what they tried to do to Lily. How they found her even here. I never wanted to see those bad wizards again. Lily promised I would not. After the wedding, which got delayed until I found someone to finish my dress, Lily said goodbye. She vowed to never visit me again, lest she bring some of her "friends" with her. I missed her Harry. But I was afraid. I didn't want people dying or turning into toads in front of me again. I didn't want any more magic. Lily saved my life, but there would have never been any trouble like that for me without her involvement. I wanted a normal life, with my normal husband." Aunt Petunia drained the last of the lemonade in her glass and continued.

- "Then two years later they come with you. The wizards and witches. Telling me your mother and father died in the hands of the bad apples she was pursuing. That if anyone knew who you were you would be in danger. That they would kill you the moment they found you." She looked at Harry with tears in her eyes. He shifted in his seat uncomfortably. He had never expected tears from Aunt Petunia. She had never showed any other emotion for him or his parents but contempt. Now this ?

- "I didn't want you to be in her world Harry. You were the last thing of her left. Lily's world of magic, wizards and witches had killed her. I wasn't about to let the same happen to you."

- "I was afraid for you, Vern was afraid for you and all of us. He allowed you to stay, but you had to be normal, or be forced to stay normal. Otherwise you would attract them here and they would kill you. You and whoever else who happened to be in your vicinity. Vern got quite adamant about that. No talk of magic would ever be allowed around you. You were to never know about how special you were. Because if you knew... They would know".

Aunt Petunia picked up a shirt that was lying on the bed and started folding it meticulously before putting it on the trunk. Her eyes downcast, avoiding Harry's eyes.

- "Dumbledore told me you saved Dudley that time after school. But just like me with Lily, nothing would have happened to Dudley if he had not been with you. We don't want this Harry. Vern, Dudley and I want a normal life. Is that so bad ? Lily understood. Can you understand too Harry ? You are all that is left from my dear sister, and I would never put you out on the street, let alone knowing it would mean deathly danger to you. But now that we can no longer protect you... Will you protect us ? Will you make your best effort to leave us out of your wizard world ?"

She looked at Harry with a pleading expression. Harry hadn't intended to do any visiting anyway so it was easy to answer her. "Sure Aunt Petunia. I will stay out of your hair from now on. No more wizards in your house"

- "There is more I want to ask... You see, I wasn't a very good aunt to you" she started but Harry interrupted her "Aunt Petunia, let's leave the past...". But Petunia interrupted Harry again.

- "But I want you to know that I did it to protect you. From the bad wizards. And from yourself. I knew if you had anything of Lily on you then you would never rest until you caught the guys who did this to her. All of them. Locked them for good. I knew Lily would. So we could not let you know you had magic in you. Can you forgive me for wanting a normal life - not just for us, but for you too - wanting it so bad that I forgot how lonely you must had felt ? How mistreated ?" said Petunia with a sad look in her face. Perhaps she did regret it after all thought Harry.

- "Aunt Petunia, what's done is done..." protested Harry

- "Yes, you did learn magic, as Dumbledore told me, because you had a right to learn how to defend yourself from those who would come for you regardless of you knowing it or not. And you did good in the magic school just like your mother. You have a lot of her in you. She would have been so proud of you Harry! I am. I wish you forgive me one day, for all those years of trying to convince you you were normal, to convince you that you weren't special at all." She rambled on but Harry wasn't listening anymore. His mom would have been proud of him. She would have done all he did. He had a lot of his mom in him. People had told him all of this before, but now coming from Aunt Petunia who had never had a positive word for him ever before... He finally believed it.


End file.
